System, method, and article of manufacture for filtering mail items based upon recipient preference

ABSTRACT

Methods and systems are provided for filtering of a mail item addressed to a recipient. In accordance with an embodiment, preference information about mail items from the recipient is obtained. The preference information is compared with information on the mail item and based on the comparison, it is determined whether the mail item should be delivered. The preference information may include at least one of a size of the mail items, a type of the mail items, a classification of the mail items, a weight of the mail items, and preference information abut senders. In accordance with another embodiment, the preference information of a recipient may be provided to a sender so that the sender can determine whether the recipient wants mail items from the sender.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 60/282,144, filed Apr. 9, 2001, the content of which ishereby incorporated in its entirety by reference.

BACKGROUND

[0002] 1. Technical Field

[0003] The present invention relates generally to controlling mail itemsthat are sent to a recipient and, more particularly, to a system,method, and article of manufacture for filtering out mail items that arecipient may not want to receive.

[0004] 2. Background Information

[0005] Over the years, individuals and businesses have becomeincreasingly dependent on delivery services, like the United StatesPostal Service (“USPS”), to deliver mail items, such as letters andpackages, to others. For example, a business may periodically sendadvertising and marketing material to current and potential customersthrough a delivery service. As a result, the amount of mail items that arecipient, such as an individual or a business, may receive hasincreased. A recipient, however, may not like some of the mail items andmay not want to receive some of these items in the future for severalreasons. One reason is that the recipient may not want to waste timeculling through all the received mail items and throwing away the itemsthat the recipient does not want.

[0006] In addition to the time problem, the recipient of a mail item maynot want a particular item delivered to them. For example, when arecipient receives a mail item that includes advertising material, therecipient may just discard it. Moreover, in certain cases, where therecipient may be able to tell that a mail item includes certain type ofmaterial or object, the recipient may discard the item without evenopening it. For example, a recipient may take a look at the bulk ratestamp or bulk rate payment indicator on a mail item and know that themail item includes material or an object that the recipient does notwant and thus, may just discard it without even opening it.

[0007] In addition, unwanted mail items, such as bulk mail, may causeproblems by filling up the limited space in a recipient's mailbox. Forexample, if a recipient has a small post office box or apartment-stylemailbox that may be six inches by four inches by ten inches deep,unwanted mail items may stuff that box to the brim every other day. Theproblem may be worse when the recipient goes on vacation and when no onemay empty the mailbox for several days. Moreover, the unwanted mailitems may crumple and tear wanted mail items. As a result of theforegoing reasons, recipients may not want all the mail items intendedfor them.

[0008] One solution to the problem of unwanted mail items is for arecipient to throw away the mail items that the recipient does not want.Another solution is for a recipient to notify the sender of the mailitem that the recipient does not wish to receive any mail item or a mailitem that includes certain materials or objects from the sender. Both ofthese solutions require the recipient to invest time that the recipientcould use for other tasks. Moreover, the latter solution may work onlyif the recipient opens the mail item and possibly finds a telephonenumber within to call and notify the sender that he does not wish toreceive certain or any mail items from the sender. Of course, thissolution may only work if the sender included a feedback phone number inthe mail item.

[0009] In addition to wasting a recipient's resources, a sender may bewasting its own resources, such as printing and shipping costs, bysending unwanted mail items to a recipient. The sender may be able tobetter utilize its resources by sending the mail item to a person whowould actually use or read it, instead of immediately throwing it away.Currently, however, unless notified by the recipient, a sender may notknow whether a recipient will throw away the mail item that the senderis sending to the recipient.

SUMMARY

[0010] To address the above and other problems of the prior art, methodsand systems are provided for filtering of a mail item addressed to arecipient. Such methods and systems obtain preference information aboutmail items from the recipient; compare information on the mail item tothe preference information; and determine whether to deliver the mailitem based on the comparison. The preference information may include atleast one of a size of the mail items, a type of the mail items, aclassification of the mail items, a weight of the mail items, andpreference information about senders.

[0011] In accordance with another aspect, systems and methods prevent asender from sending a mail item to a recipient. Such systems and methodsobtain preference information about mail items from the recipient andprovide the preference information to the sender. A rational sender willnot send a mail item to a recipient who does not want it.

[0012] Both the foregoing and the following description are exemplaryand explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of theclaimed invention as opposed to limiting it in any manner.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013]FIG. 1 is an exemplary block diagram of a delivery systemillustrating the various entities and their relationships to each other,in accordance with methods and systems consistent with the presentinvention;

[0014]FIG. 2 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating the steps of aprocess for filtering mail items, in accordance with methods and systemsconsistent with the present invention;

[0015]FIG. 3 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating the steps of aprocess for providing a sender with a recipient's preferences, inaccordance with methods and systems consistent with the presentinvention;

[0016]FIG. 4 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating the steps of anotherprocess for filtering mail items, in accordance with methods and systemsconsistent with the present invention;

[0017]FIG. 5 is an exemplary block diagram of a system, in accordancewith methods and systems consistent with the present invention;

[0018]FIG. 6 is an exemplary block diagram of a client computer, inaccordance with methods and systems consistent with the presentinvention;

[0019]FIG. 7 is an exemplary block diagram of a delivery servicecomputer, in accordance with methods and systems consistent with thepresent invention; and

[0020]FIG. 8 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating the steps performedby a filter process, in accordance with methods and systems consistentwith the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The following detailed description refers to the accompanyingdrawings. While the description includes exemplar embodiments, otherembodiments are possible and changes may be made to the embodimentsdescribed without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.The following detailed description does not limit the invention.Instead, the appended claims and their equivalents define the scope ofthe invention.

[0022] Systems and methods are provided to filter out mail items that arecipient may not want to receive through a delivery service. In oneembodiment, the recipient of a mail item may provide preferenceinformation, including a filter criteria, to a delivery service, such asthe USPS. The filter criteria may be include a variety of information,including recipient's preference information about the types of mailitems, such as a letter or a package; the classification of mail items,such as bulk-class mail items or first class mail items; the size of themail items; and the weight of the mail items that a recipient may or maynot want to receive. For example, the recipient may specify that therecipient does not want to receive bulk-class mail items. In addition,the filter criteria may include names of the senders from whom therecipient may or may not want to receive mail items.

[0023] After receiving the preference inflation, the delivery servicemay store it and then compare all mail items addressed to the recipientto this information, including the filter criteria. Then, based on thecomparison, the delivery service may remove from the delivery stream allitems that the recipient may not want to receive. For example, if thefilter criteria indicates that a recipient does not want to receivebulk-class mail items, the delivery service may remove such mail itemsfrom the delivery stream so that such mail items are not delivered tothe recipient. Moreover, the delivery service may return, dispose of, orsave the removed mail items.

[0024] In another embodiment, the delivery service may provide all orpart of the preference information of recipients to the senders. Forexample, the delivery service may inform a sender that a recipient doesnot want to receive certain mail items or any mail items from thesender. In still another embodiment, where the delivery service may havenotified a sender that a recipient does not desire to receive aparticular or any mail item from the sender, but the sender still sendsthe mail item to the recipient, the delivery service may filter out themail item and thus, the mail item may not be delivered to the recipient.

[0025]FIG. 1 is an exemplary block diagram of a delivery systemillustrating the various entities and their relationships to each other,in accordance with methods and systems consistent with the presentinvention. As shown, a delivery system may include one or more senders102, a delivery service 104, and one or more recipients 106. Senders 102may send mail items 108, such as letters or packages, to recipients 106via delivery service 104. Senders 102 and recipients 106 may includeindividuals or businesses. Delivery service 104 may include any service,such as the USPS and United Postal Service (“S”), that delivers mailitems 108 to recipients 106. Mail items 108 may include letters,packages, magazines, and bulk mail items, etc. Although only onedelivery service 104 is shown in FIG. 1, one skilled in the art willrecognize that the delivery system may include more than one deliveryservice 104.

[0026] Delivery service 104 may have preference information about arecipient 106, including the recipient's preferences regarding mailitems 108, and thus, may deliver mail items 108 to recipient 106 basedon the recipient's preferences. The recipients 106 may receive the sentmail items 108 through a post office box, a mailbox located at theirhome or business, or thorough a representative of the delivery service104.

[0027]FIG. 2 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating the steps of aprocess for filtering mail items, in accordance with methods and systemsconsistent with the present invention. As shown, recipient 106 mayprovide preference information, including a filter criteria and otherinformation, to delivery service 104 (step 202). The filter criteria mayinclude any information that helps delivery service 104 determinewhether a recipient 106 wants to receive a certain mail item 108. Forexample, the filter criteria may include the recipient's preferenceinformation about the types of mail items; the classification of mailitems; the size of the mail items; and the weight of the mail items thatthe recipient may or may not want to receive. In addition, the filtercriteria may include names of the senders 102 from whom the recipient106 may or may not want to receive mail items 108. In addition to thefilter criteria, recipient 106 may provide other information, such asname, address, and salary information, to delivery service 104. Therecipient 106 may provide this other information voluntarily or upondemand by delivery service 104.

[0028] Recipient 106 may provide the preference information to deliveryservice 104 through a printed form; through an online network, such asthe Internet; through a telephone; or through any other means ofcommunication. For example, a recipient 106 could provide the preferenceinformation by filling out a printed form and submitting it to a postoffice or by mailing the form to the post office. Moreover, the formthat obtains the preference information may be incorporated with any ofthe existing forms of delivery service 104.

[0029] Once delivery service 104 receives the preference informationincluding the filter criteria from a recipient 106, it may store thisinformation manually or electronically (step 204). For example, deliveryservice 104 may store the information in a database on a computer.

[0030] After the preference information including the filter criteriahas been stored, delivery service 104 may use this information wheneverit receives mail items 108. Upon receiving a mail item 108 that isintended for a recipient 106, delivery service 104 may compare theinformation on the mail item 108 to the preference information,including the filter criteria (step 206). The comparison of theinformation on the mail item 108 to the preference information may bedone manually or electronically. In one embodiment, a worker of deliveryservice 104 may manually compare mail items 108 against the recipient'spreference information. In another embodiment, a sorting device may beused to compare the mail item 108 to the preference information. Thesorting device may work with a database that includes the preferenceinformation to compare the mail item 108 to the preference information.In addition, the sorting device may include image recognition hardwareand software to recognize the information on the mail item. In stillanother embodiment, the sorting device and a worker of the deliveryservice 104 may compare mail items 108 against the stored preferenceinformation for a recipient 106.

[0031] The comparison operation may occur at any point in the deliveryprocess. However, greater efficiency may be obtained if the comparisonoperation is performed early in the delivery process to avoid processingitems that will not be delivered.

[0032] Depending on the preference information, delivery service 104 maydetermine whether or not it can deliver the mail item 108 to itsintended recipient (step 208). For example, if the mail item 108 is froma sender named “X” and the filter criteria for a recipient indicatesthat the recipient does not wish to receive any mail item from X, thendelivery service 104 may not deliver the mail item 108 to thatrecipient.

[0033] If the deliver service 104 determines that the intended recipient106 wants to receive a certain mail item 108 or if it determines thatthe intended recipient 106 has indicated no preference as to whether itwants to receive a certain mail item 108, delivery service 104 maydeliver the mail item 108 to the recipient 106 (step 210). On the otherhand, if the delivery service 104 determines that the intended recipient106 does not want to receive mail item 108, then the deliver service maynot deliver that mail item 108 to recipient 106 (step 212). Instead, thedelivery service 104 may discard that mail item 108, return it to sender102, or store it for delivery to the recipient 106 in the future. In oneembodiment, delivery service 104 may prompt recipient 106 to determinewhat the delivery service 104 should do with unwanted mail items 108.For example, a recipient 106 may want the delivery service 104 to removeall unwanted mail items 108 and store them for pickup by recipient 106at a later time.

[0034] Instead of filtering items itself, delivery service 104 mayprovide a recipient's preferences to sender 102 so that a sender 102 candecide whether or not to send a mail item 108 to a recipient 106. Arational sender 102 would not send a mail item 108 to a recipient 106who has indicated that it does not want to receive any mail items 108from the sender 102. FIG. 3 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating thesteps of a process for providing a sender with a recipient'spreferences, in accordance with methods and systems consistent with thepresent invention. Steps 302 and 304 of FIG. 3 are similar to steps 202and 204 of FIG. 2 and are not described herein. After receiving andstoring the preference information, delivery service 104 may provide allor part of the preference information for a recipient 106 to sender 102electronically, such as through the Internet, or manually, such asthrough the mail (step 306).

[0035] Delivery service 104 may provide the preference information toselective senders 102 or to all senders 102. For example, the preferenceinformation may be supplied only to senders 102 who have sent mail items108 to recipients 106 in the past.

[0036] The preference information, including the filter criteria, couldbe very valuable to senders 102. For example, just as the filtercriteria may identify recipients who do not want certain mail items 108,it may also identify recipients that do, or at least who have not saidthat they do not want to receive certain mail items 108. Thus, deliveryservice 104 may also provide a list of recipients 106 who do wantcertain mail items 108 to senders 1(02, or the senders 102 may generatesuch a list from the preference information provided to them by deliveryservice 104.

[0037] In addition, using the preference information, senders 102 mayincrease the chances of a recipient receiving and opening their mailitem 108. For example, senders 102 may solicit recipients 106 who haveindicated that they do not want to receive mail items 108 that have acertain classification, such as bulk-class mail items, by using thepreference information to generate first-class mail items instead ofbulk-class mail item to those recipients, thus increasing the chances ofa recipient 106 opening the mail item 108.

[0038] As indicated in the foregoing description, delivery service 104may provide some or all of the recipient preference information tosenders 102. In one embodiment, where the senders 102 have householdincome information about the recipients 106, senders 102 could makemailing decisions based on this information. For example, a sender 102may stop sending mail items 108 to recipients 106 that only make $30,000year, but continue sending mail items 108 to $50,000 a year households,even though those households have indicated they do not want certaintype of mail items 108 from the sender 102. Sender 102 may keep sendingto high-income households because they are more likely to purchasesomething from the sender 102.

[0039] Moreover, in another embodiment, using the preference inflation,delivery service 104 may approach a certain sender 102 and offer theminformation about recipients 106 who have indicated a preference toreceiving mail items 108 from that sender 102 or certain types of mailitems 108 which that sender may offer. As a result, sender 102 maytarget these recipients, for example, through a new advertising campaignbecause sender 102 knows that these recipients 106 may be interested inthe products or services of the sender 102.

[0040] Moreover, delivery service 104 may offer the preferenceinformation to senders 102 based on several factors. For example, in oneembodiment, delivery service 104 may offer the filter criteria tosenders 102 only if the senders 102 agree to pay delivery service 104.In another embodiment, delivery service 104 may offer the filtercriteria to senders 102 free of charge. In still another embodiment,delivery service 104 may offer the filter criteria to senders 102 onlyafter obtaining recipients consent.

[0041] Although the delivery service 104 may provide senders 102 with arecipient's preferences, senders 102 may ignore the recipient'spreferences and send mail items 108 to the recipients 106 anyway. FIG. 4is an exemplary flowchart illustrating the steps of a process forfiltering mail items where the senders 102 may have ignored therecipient's preferences, in accordance with methods and systemsconsistent with the present invention. Steps 402, 404, 406, 408, 410,and 412 of FIG. 4 are similar to steps 202, 204, 206, 208, 210, and 212of FIG. 2. The only difference in FIG. 4 and FIG. 2 is the addition of anew step (step 405). As a result of this step, delivery service 405 mayprovide part or all of the preference information to senders 102 so thatthe senders 102 only send mail items 108 to those recipients 106 whowant mail items 108 from the sender 102 or who have at least notindicated that they do not want to receive mail items 108 from thesender 102. In this embodiment, if a sender 102 ignores the recipient'spreferences and sends an unwanted mail item 108 to a recipient 106,delivery service 104 may nevertheless remove this unwanted mail item 108from the delivery stream using the preference information of therecipient.

[0042] Although not shown in FIGS. 2-4, it will be apparent to oneskilled in the art that a recipient 106 may modify the preferenceinformation, including the filter criteria, provided to delivery service104 at anytime and that the changes maybe sent to senders 102 bydelivery service 104. Moreover, a delivery service 104 may or may notcharge a recipient for taking out unwanted mail items 108. The chargemay be a nominal fee, such as fifty cents a moth or a dollar a month.

[0043] Furthermore, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art thatsome or all of the steps shown in FIGS. 2-4 may be implementedelectronically, for example, through the use of computers. FIGS. 5-8illustrate such an electronic system. FIG. 5 is an exemplary blockdiagram of such a system 500, in accordance with methods and systemsconsistent with the present invention. System 500 may include one ormore client computers 502, a delivery service computer 504, and one ormore sender computers 506, all of which may be interconnected via anetwork 508.

[0044] Each client computer 502 may include a computer or any otherprocessor capable of communicating with other computers (e.g., deliveryservice computer 504) and displaying information. Client computer 502may be located at a recipient's home or at a customer service locationoperated by delivery service 104. Using client computer 502, a recipient106 may send filter criteria to delivery service computer 504.

[0045] Delivery service computer 504 may include one or more computerscapable of communicating with other computers (e.g., client computer502) and displaying information. Delivery service computer 504 may beoperated by a delivery service 104. Delivery service computer 504 mayobtain personal information (e.g., name, address, financial information)to establish an account for a recipient 106 and may assign an accountnumber to the recipient 106. Delivery service computer 504 may alsoassign logon information (e.g., user name and/or password) to arecipient 106.

[0046] In addition, delivery service computer 504 may obtain preferenceinformation, including filter criteria, from a recipient 106, may storeit in a database, and may send all or parts of it to sender computer506. Upon receipt of a mail item 108 from a sender 102, delivery service104 may use delivery service computer 504 to read, for example, theshipping information affixed on the mail item 108, compare it to thepreference information for the intended recipient 106 of mail item 108,and determine whether mail item 108 should be delivered to the recipient106.

[0047] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention,delivery service computer 504 may include all or some of the componentsshown in the registration system disclosed in U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 09/809,328 (“'328 application”), filed Mar. 16, 2001, which ishereby incorporated by reference.

[0048] Sender computer 506 may include a computer or any other processorcapable of communicating with other computers (e.g., delivery servicecomputer 504) and displaying information. Sender computer 506 mayreceive recipient preference information, such as filter criteria, fromdelivery service computer 504, and may use this information to determinewhether or not it should send mail items 108 to certain recipients 106.Sender computer 506 may be operated by a sender 102.

[0049] Network 508 may be a single or a combination of any type ofcomputer network, such as a Local Area Network (LAN) or a Wide AreaNetwork (WAN). For example, network 508 may comprise an Ethernet networkoperating according to the IEEE 802.3 standard. In addition, network 508may be a combination of public (e.g., internet) and private networks.

[0050] Other system and network configurations will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art from the foregoing and following description, andthus, are also within the scope of the present invention. For example,it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that multiple computersmay perform the tasks performed by delivery service computer 504.

[0051]FIG. 6 is an exemplary block diagram of client computer 502, inaccordance with methods and systems consistent with the presentinvention. As shown, client computer 502 may include a processor 602,which connects via a bus 604 to a memory 606, a secondary storage 608, anetwork interface 610, and an input/output interface 612.

[0052] Memory 606 may include an operating system 614 and a browserprocess 616. Operating system 614, may include, for example, the Windows2000 operating system available from Microsoft Corporation. Browserprocess 616 may include a conventional software application, such asNETSCAPE NAVIGATOR or INTERNET EXPLORER, for issuing HTTP requests toother computers (e.g., delivery service computer 504). For example,browser process 616 may request a specific web page or request othercomputers (e.g., delivery service computer 504) to perform a databasequery. Browser process 616 also may read HTML codes embedded in the webpages received from the various servers to determine how, where, and inwhat colors and fonts the elements on the web pages must be displayed.In another embodiment, if cellular phones are used as client computers502, a WAP-compatible micro-browser may be used as the browser process616. In still another embodiment, encryption capability may be includedin browser process 616.

[0053] Secondary storage 608 may include a computer readable medium,such as a disk drive and a tape drive. From the tape drive, software anddata may be loaded onto the disk drive, which can then be copied intomemory 606. Similarly, software and data in memory 606 may be copiedonto the disk drive, which can then be loaded onto the tape drive.

[0054] Network interface 610 may transmit and receive via network 508messages addressed to client computer 502. Input/Output interface 612may include, for example, a keyboard or a keypad and a display unit.

[0055]FIG. 7 is an exemplary block diagram of delivery service computer504, in accordance with methods and systems consistent with the presentinvention. As shown, delivery service computer 504 may include aprocessor 702, which connects via a bus 704 to a memory 706, a secondarystorage 708, a network interface 710, and an input/output interface 712.

[0056] Memory 706 may include an operating system 714, a criteriaprocess 716, a filter process 718, and a database 720. Operating system714 may include, for example, the Windows 2000 operating systemavailable from Microsoft Corporation. Criteria process 716 and filterprocess 718 may include stored instructions in the form of software,which are executed by processor 702. Criteria process 716 may obtainpreference information, including filter criteria, from a recipient 106,store it in database 720, and may send it to sender computer 506. Filterprocess 718 may filter mail items 108 that are received by deliveryservice 104 for delivery to recipients 106. Database 720 may include anytype of database, such as a relational database and may include severaltypes of information, such as preference information of recipients 106.

[0057] Secondary storage 708 may include a computer readable medium,such as a disk drive and a tape drive. From the tape drive, software anddata may be loaded onto the disk drive, which can then be copied intomemory 706. Similarly, software and data in memory 706 may be copiedonto the disk drive, which can then be loaded onto the tape drive.

[0058] Network interface 710 may transmit and receive via network 508messages addressed to delivery service computer 504. Input/Outputinterface 712 may include, for example, a keyboard or a keypad and adisplay unit.

[0059] It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that clientcomputer 502 and delivery service computer 504 may include some or allof the components shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, respectively. In addition, itwill be apparent to one skilled in the art that client computer 502 anddelivery service computer 504 may include additional components notshown in FIGS. 6 and 7, respectively. For example, delivery servicecomputer 504 may include an image recognition device to read informationon mail items 108 and provide this information to filter process 718 forcomparison to the preference information. Moreover, it will be apparentto one skilled in the art that sender computer 506 may include some orall of the components shown in FIG. 6.

[0060] The operation of system 500 will now be described. A recipient106 may use client computer 502 to connect to delivery service computer504 and to request filtering of mail items. For example, using clientcomputer 502, a recipient 106 may visit a web site hosted by deliveryservice computer 504 and may select the option of filtering mail itemsfrom the web site. In response, criteria process 716 may requestpreference information, including the filter criteria, from recipient106. After obtaining the preference information, criteria process 716may store it in database 720. Criteria process 716 may also send all orpart of the preference information to sender computers 506.

[0061] When the criteria process 716 is obtaining the preferenceinformation from a recipient 106, delivery service computer 104 maycreate an account for the recipient 106 and/or assign logon informationto the recipient 106. The recipient may use the logon information toaccess other services provided by the delivery service or may use it tochange preference information at a later time.

[0062] After the preference information has been stored in database 720,filter process 718 of delivery service computer 504 may use it to filtermail items 108. FIG. 8 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating the stepsperformed by filter process 718, in accordance with methods and systemsconsistent with the present invention. Upon receiving a mail item 108that is intended for a recipient 106, filter process 718 obtains thename and/or address of the recipient 106 (step 802). In one embodiment,the sender 102 may have bar coded the recipient name and addressinformation on mail item 108 and thus, filter process 718 may just readthis barcode information and decode it. In another embodiment, filterprocess 718 may scan the mail item 108 to determine the name or addressof the recipient 106. Any conventional scanning or image recognitionmechanisms may be used to determine the name or address of therecipient.

[0063] Next, filter process 718 may query database 720 to determine ifdatabase 720 has preference information for the intended recipient 106(step 804). For example, filter process 718 may query the database 720to determine if there is a record for the named recipient or for theaddress on the mail item 108.

[0064] If there is no preference information for the intended recipient,filter process 718 may not filter out the mail item 108 and the mailitem 108 may be delivered to its intended recipient 106 (step 806). Onthe other hand, if there is preference information for the intendedrecipient 106 in database 720, filter process 718 may retrieve thepreference information from the database 720 (step 808).

[0065] Next, filter process 718 may obtain more information about themail item 108 (step 810). For example, filter process 718 may obtainsender information or information about the type of the mail item,classification of the mail item, the weight of the mail item, or thesize of the mail item, for example, by scanning the mail item. Afterobtaining more information about the mail item 108, filter process 718may compare this information with the preference information (812) todetermine if this mail item 108 should be filtered out (step 814).

[0066] If filter process 718 determines that the mail item should not befiltered out, filter process 718 may not filter out the mail item 108and the mail item 108 may be delivered to its intended recipient 106(steps 814 and 806). On the other hand, if filter process 718 determinesthat the mail item should be filtered, filter process 718 may causedelivery service computer 104, for example, to generate a label thatreads “Do not deliver” (814 and 816). A representative of the deliveryservice 104 may place the label on the mail item 108 so that the mailitem 108 is not delivered to the recipient. It will be apparent to oneskilled in the art that other methods may be used to indicate that amail item 108 should not be delivered to the recipient 106. For example,filter process 718 may flag a database on delivery service computer 504to indicate that a certain mail item 108 should not be delivered.

[0067] The above-noted features, other aspects, and principles of thepresent invention may be implemented in various system or networkconfigurations to provide automated and computational tools forfiltering out mail items. Such configurations and applications may bespecially constructed for performing the various processes andoperations of the invention or they may include a general purposecomputer or computing platform selectively activated or reconfigured byprogram code to provide the necessary functionality. The processesdisclosed herein are not inherently related to any particular computeror other apparatus, and may be implemented by a suitable combination ofhardware, software, and/or firmware. For example, various generalpurpose machines may be used with programs written in accordance withteachings of the invention, or it may be more convenient to construct aspecialized apparatus or system to perform the required methods andtechniques.

[0068] The present invention also relates to computer readable mediathat include program instruction or program code for performing variouscomputer-implemented operations based on the methods and processes ofthe invention. The media and program instructions may be those speciallydesigned and constructed for the purposes of the invention, or they maybe of the kind well-known and available to those having skill in thecomputer software arts. The media may take many forms including, but notlimited to, non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media.Non-volatile media includes, for example, optical or magnetic disks.Volatile media includes, for example, dynamic memory. Transmission mediaincludes, for example, coaxial cables, copper wire, and fiber optics.Transmission media can also take the form of acoustic or light waves,such as those generated during radio-wave and infra-red datacommunications. Examples of program instructions include both machinecode, such as produced by compiler, and files containing a high levelcode that can be executed by the computer using an interpreter.

[0069] Furthermore, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art thatvarious modifications and variations can be made in the system andmethod of the present invention and in construction of this inventionwithout departing from the scope or spirit of the invention.

[0070] Moreover, other embodiments of the invention will be apparent tothose skilled in the art frown consideration of the specification andpractice of the invention disclosed herein. It is intended that thespecification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a truescope and spirit ,of the invention being indicated by the followingclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for filtering a mail item addressed to arecipient, comprising: obtaining preference information about mail itemsfrom the recipient; comparing information about the mail item to thepreference information; and determining whether to deliver the mail itembased on the comparison.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein obtainingpreference information from the recipient comprises obtaining preferenceinformation on at least one of a size of the mail items, a type of themail items, a classification of the mail items, a weight of the mailitems, and preference inflation about senders.
 3. The method of claim 1,further comprising obtaining information about the mail item.
 4. Themethod of claim 3, wherein obtaining information about the mail itemcomprises obtaining at least one of a size of the mail item, a type ofthe mail item, a classification of the mail item, a weight of the mailitem, and information about a sender of the mail item.
 5. The method ofclaim 3, wherein obtaining information about the mail item comprisesobtaining information about the mail item using an image recognitiondevice.
 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising disposing of themail item without delivering the item to the recipient, if the mail itemdoes not match the preference information.
 7. The method of claim 1,further comprising returning the mail item to a, sender of the mail itemwithout delivering the mail item to the recipient, if the mail item doesnot match the preference information.
 8. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising storing the mail item for delivery to the recipient upondemand in the future, if the mail item does not match the preferenceinformation.
 9. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing thepreference information in a database.
 10. A method for preventing asender from sending a mail item to a recipient, comprising: obtainingpreference information about mail items from the recipient; and sendingat least part of the preference information to the sender.
 11. Themethod of claim 10, wherein sending at least part of the preferenceinformation to the sender comprises informing the sender that therecipient does not want to receive a certain mail item from the sender.12. The method of claim 10, further comprising: receiving the mail itemfrom the sender; comparing information about the mail item to thepreference information; and determining whether to deliver the mail itembased on the comparison.
 13. The method of claim 10, wherein sending atleast part of the preference information to the sender comprises sendingat least part of the preference information for a monetary charge. 14.The method of claim 10, wherein sending at least part of the preferenceinformation to the sender comprises sending at least part of thepreference information only after the recipient consents.
 15. A systemfor filtering a mail item addressed to a recipient, comprising: meansfor obtaining preference information about mail items from therecipient; means for comparing information about the mail item to thepreference information; and means for determining whether to deliver themail item based on the comparison.
 16. The system of claim 15, whereinpreference information comprises at least one of a size of the mailitems, a type of the mail items, a classification of the mail items, aweight of the mail items, and preference information about senders. 17.The system of claim 15, further comprising means for obtaininginformation about the mail item, the information including at least oneof a size of the mail item, a type of the mail item, a classification ofthe mail item, a weight of the mail item, and information about a senderof the mail item.
 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the informationabout the mail item is obtained using an image recognition device.
 19. Asystem for preventing a sender from sending a mail item to a recipient,comprising: means for obtaining preference information about mail itemsfrom the recipient; and means for sending at least part of thepreference information to the sender.
 20. The system of claim 19,further comprising: means for receiving the mail item from the sender;means for comparing information about the mail item to the preferenceinformation; and means for determining whether to deliver the mail itembased on the comparison.
 21. A computer-readable medium containinginstructions for causing a computer to perform a method for filtering amail item addressed to a recipient, the method comprising: obtainingpreference information about mail items from the recipient; comparinginformation about the mail item to the preference information; anddetermining whether to deliver the mail item based on the comparison.22. A computer-readable medium containing instructions for causing acomputer to perform a method for preventing a sender from sending a mailitem to a recipient, the method comprising: obtaining preferenceinformation about mail items from the recipient; and sending at leastpart of the preference information to the sender.
 23. Thecomputer-readable medium of claim 22, wherein the method furthercomprises: receiving the mail item from the sender; comparinginformation about the mail item to the preference information; anddetermining whether to deliver the mail item based on the comparison.